Women`s holiday wish list Women`s holiday wish list

Transcription

INSIDE:
•••••••
November 2002
Best toys
of the year
Wrapping
flourishes
Collector’s
favorites
Women’s
holiday
wish list
The Packet Magazine is a supplement to: The Princeton Packet, The Lawrence Ledger, Windsor-Hights Herald, The Cranbury Press,
The South Brunswick Post, The Beacon, Hillsborough Beacon, The Manville News, Hopewell Valley News, The Messenger-Press
2MG0201A1119 MAGAZINE
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Holiday Gift Guide
À 2MG0201A1119 ZALLCALL
November 19, 2002
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2MG0301A1119
2MG0301A1119 ZALLCALL
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Metro
Gentlemen, Start Your Engines!
Shopping tips for the women on your list
BY PAULA L. MOLINO
O you normally shop for gifts the night before
you need them? Avoid the hassles and headaches of last minute shopping with a few tips
that can make your holiday gift giving more
pleasurable — for you, and for the women in your life.
D
ASK FOR A LIST
DON’T SLIP UP
It’s many a man’s fantasy to select (and have her
wear) sexy lingerie. Lingerie is a luxury many women
do not buy for themselves. Choose carefully for her
body type. If she is a flannel nightgown and socks type
of gal, chances are she will not light up at the lacey teddy you find so appealing. If her underwear drawer
houses utilitarian white and beige, a black thong might
be too daring.
MAKES SCENTS
Making a list and checking it twice streamlines your
A vanity lined with bottles of dust-covered perfume
shopping. Don’t be afraid to ask her what she would like might mean she doesn’t like them or need any. Perfume
Santa to bring. Listen and learn by jotting down items is an individual choice and reacts differently to each
she has mentioned she would like to have.
woman’s body chemistry. Take note to which kind of
scent she prefers (i.e.: sweet or subtle). A heavenly
scent on one woman, might gag the next.
KNOW HER SIZE
No clue as to her clothing size? Easy detective work
is all it takes. Rummage through her closet or ransack
the laundry basket to read the size on labels. Know her
styling preferences, too. If designer labels adorn her
closet, don’t purchase her holiday outfit at Wal-Mart. If
you’re unsure of clothing selections, take her sister or
friend with you, or hire a personal shopper. She’ll be
happier with clothing that matches her personality and
lifestyle.
GIFT CERTIFICATES ARE EASY
The vote is still out — some women love them, some
think gift certificates are impersonal. If she has a favorite store, she’d probably enjoy a gift certificate from
there. You may want to hint at suggestions. Certificates
are the best gift for the woman who has everything or as
a supplement to another gift. A win-win solution, she
can make her own selection at her leisure. Don’t forget
home improvement stores, bookstores, and day salons
for ultimate pampering.
WHAT’S HER HOBBY?
Pay attention — what hobby, pastime or sport is she
passionate about? Perhaps she’d like ice-skating lessons, movie passes or a lift ticket for her favorite ski resort. Is she an avid reader? Buy her books or a magazine
subscription. What does she collect? A special piece of
glassware, cookbook, or thimble could be a rare find for
her collection. Try not to purchase gifts that symbolize
manual labor, such as an iron. You might as well come
out and say, “Honey, iron my shirts.”
BE CREATIVE
Not every gift has to be purchased in a mall. Design a
coupon book with offers to grocery shop, take care of
the kids, or be the handyman. Make up a certificate for a
romantic evening at home. Arrange to send the kids to
your parents, light the fireplace, cook dinner, uncork the
wine, take a bubble bath together (wash her hair) and
smooch into the night.
So, men, get out there and get shopping. Hey...and
let’s not wait until Christmas Eve this year. Your efforts
will be noticed. Good luck!
Paula L. Molino is a free-lance writer and frequent
contributor to Packet Publications’ magazines. She is
owner of Fashion Fix, which offers fashion consulting,
wardrobe analysis, closet organization and personal
shopping. For more information, contact [email protected] or (215) 321-7399.
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
3
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Gentlemen, Start Your Engines!. . . Page 3
Toy Smarts. . . Page 25
Shopping tips for the women on your gift list. /
By Paula L. Molino
Best toys of 2002 encourage imaginative play and learning. /
By Ruth B. Roufberg
The First Noel. . . Page 5
Healthy Holidays. . . Page 28
Gift ideas for baby’s first holiday season./
By Ruth B. Roufberg
Gather information on special diet needs before gathering at your holiday table./
By Pat Summers
Share the JOY. . . Page 7
It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year. . . Page 30
Say ‘thanks’ with sweet treats for your host. /
By Suzanne Molino Singleton
For holiday fun, New York City is the hottest ticket around./
By Gloria Hayes Kremer
Festive Flourishes. . . Page 9
Silent Night, Solstice Night. . . Page 33
Tuck your gifts in wonderful wraps and embellishments./
By Loretta Sherman
Gather ‘round the Yule fire for winter reflection and holiday cheer./
By Dawn M. Nikithser
Jingle Bells, Jingle Sells. . . Page 12
It pays to be a savvy shopper. /
The Holly and The Ivy. . . Page 35
All I Want for the Holidays. . . Page 14
Decorating your holiday home with fresh greens./
By Paula L. Molino
Make memories last a lifetime when you share the gift of cherished collectibles./
By Paula L. Molino
Geek Gift Guide. . . Page 36
It Takes a Village. . . Page 17
Gadgets and gizmos to delight your high tech toys guru./
By Dawn M. Nikithser
Styling tips for your holiday collectibles. /
By Paula L. Molino
A Grandparents’ Odyssey. . . Page 38
Pretty as a Picture. . . Page 22
Elegant china and accessories help set your holiday table aglow./
By Sally Friedman
Treating your grandchild to the best of travel offers memorable returns./
By Sally Friedman
Holiday Gift Guide
is published by The Princeton Packet, Inc.
300 Witherspoon St., Princeton NJ 08542
Copyright 2002
Editor — Cynthia Cannon
Advertising Coordinator — Michelle Riganati
Cover Design — Anna Kinal
Cover Photo — Frank Wojciechowski at Bill Sheldon Designs, Hillsborough
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November 19, 2002
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Don’t Miss
Alphablock Sorter provides multiple activities with stackable
foam-filled blocks for ages 6
months and up. By Parents Magazine Play+Learn, distributed
by Battat.
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Gift ideas for
baby’s first holiday season
BY RUTH B. ROUFBERG
HE challenge in buying toys for babies is
that their tastes don’t always coincide with
those of the gift- givers.
Why? Perhaps we adults are so sophisticated and have seen so many toys that we gravitate toward innovative playthings with electronic
components. Such toys appear to offer babies the
most stimulation and entertainment. We assume
the babies will eagerly activate all the lights and
sounds, and somehow become smarter sooner.
But that is not the infants’ agenda. They are still
trying to figure out how to bat at a dangling plush
ball, or pick up and let go of a rattle. Such endeavors keep them happily engaged because they know
what their goal is and they can tell when they have
succeeded.
Here are some toys that let babies play in their
own way and learn more in the long run.
T
play.com).
Twisty Figure 8 Teether Toy can be twisted
into various configurations by a baby who is ready
for two-handed play. Smooth and textured segments provide a choice of surfaces to soothe teething gums. Manipulating this toy strengthens the
wrist and finger muscles that will later be used for
writing. Ages 6 months and up, $6. (Em-bry-onics / Munchkin, 800-247-2223, www.munchkininc.com.)
Alphablock Sorter provides multiple activities
with eight stackable foam-filled 3 1 ⁄ 2 -inch blocks.
Six have openings into which shape-sorting rattles
or textured teethers fit snugly. The solid sides
have either letters or numbers, each with a corresponding picture. These can be used like a picture
book when the older baby is ready to learn the
names of objects. Everything stores in a zippered
clear vinyl carrying case. Ages 6 months and up,
Willie Worm Tracking Tube helps infants $30. (Parents Magazine Play+Learn, distributed
learn to focus their eyes on a moving object. A red by Battat, 800-822-8828, www.battat-toys.com.)
ball floating inside a transparent tube immediately
Whose House Shape Sorter holds nine pieces:
captures an infant’s attention. As you slowly
move it from side to side, his eyes eagerly follow cubes, spheres and pyramids. Each shape is rethe ball. Now make magic! Hold the tube vertical- peated three ways: in clear plastic with beads enly, and the ball disappears; invert the tube, and it closed, in textured fabric, and as vinyl “animals.”
reappears. In a few months the baby will enjoy Babies shake, roll, and stack them, play fill-andcreating the peek-a-boo effect himself and squeez- dump through the zip-top “roof,” and eventually
ing the ball on each end to produce a different discover the fun of pushing the blocks through the
sound. Ages birth and up, $8. (Early Years / International Playthings, 800-631-1272, www.intSee FIRST, Page 6
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Holiday Gift Guide
5
80 12:16:31 11/18/02
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First
Continued from Page 5
shape-sorting side walls. From three months up, $30.
(IQ Baby / Small World Toys, 800-421-4153,
www.smallworldtoys.com.)
Car Activity Walker provides a stable base for the
soon-to-be toddler who needs support while learning to
walk. Until then, there are blocks and a phone to play
with on the floor. It’s OK to leave the blocks on the
floor; steering the car over them sweeps them into a
storage bin. Ages 9-36 months, $40. (Chicco,
877-424-4226, www.chiccousa.com.)
Jumbo Music Block presents a different combination
of color, shape, music and related activities on each side
of its 14-inch velour cube . For example, when the circle
faces up, the music is “Ring Around the Rosy,“ and a
round button opens the round flap, under which is a
round pocket containing a ball on a string. Every baby
instinctively tugs at the ball, and when he lets go, the
string slowly retreats into its pocket with a clicking
sound. Each time the baby turns the cube to a different
side (exercising big arm, leg, and back muscles), there’s
a new shape with related song, flap closure, and toy or
activity inside. Ages 1-4 years, $60, (Neurosmith,
800-220-3669, www.neurosmith.com).
What these toys have in common is that they do not
have an agenda of their own that determines the play
pattern. These toys allow the baby to do whatever she
wants to do, and that makes all the difference in play experiences that make babies feel happy and successful.
Ruth B. Roufberg is a toy consultant and juror for the
Parents’ Choice Toy Awards. Her toy reviews are published by many parenting publications and are syndicated nationally by Tribune Media Services.
Jumbo Music Block presents a different combination of color, shape, music and related activities on each side
of its velour cube. For ages 1-4 years
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Holiday Gift Guide
November 19, 2002
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Share the JOY
BY SUZANNE MOLINO SINGLETON
HE holiday season brings travel season to others’ homes. When you are a house guest this
holiday, bring along a small gift upon arrival
or send one after your visit to say ‘thank you.’
It’s a nice touch!
These handful of ideas may help you create a
thoughtful gift for when you are a house guest, specifically in five circumstances: visiting a boy/girlfriend’s
parents, a close girlfriend, an acquaintance, an elderly
person, or a relative.
T
Visiting a boyfriend’s or girlfriend’s parents
Touch their heart — Touch the parents’ heart with
praise for their son/daughter in a card or a letter, maybe
even including poetry. Be sure to mention that you now
understand where s/he (your boyfriend or girlfriend) inherited the looks, hospitality, kindness, compassion, etc.
Include a framed photo of the two of you, or of your
boy/girlfriend with the parents (which you snapped during the visit of course!).
See JOY, Page 8
Say ‘thanks’ with sweet treats for your host
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
7
80 11:32:28 11/18/02
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Holiday Gift Guide
November 19, 2002
B
Joy
Tape a friendship message on a cassette, thanking your
friend for the hospitality and telling her how much she
means to you.
Hobby token — Send a token of each parents’
interest. Does her dad golf? Send a bag of tees,
box of balls, or a pro shop gift certificate. Is his
mom an avid reader? Buy a pretty bookmark with
a new novel. Do they love movies? Wrap up movie gift certificates and a bag of popcorn and candy.
things to do, tasty restaurants) and invite your acquaintance to visit you. Or, give a token from your
state or town (baseball hat from a major league
team, history book of the area, promotional Tshirt, local cookbook). Include a map and directions to your house.
Visiting an elder
Holiday decor — Giving a holiday decoration
Low maintenance — A low maintenance pet
is a safe and easy gift. The market is saturated
can
help keep an elderly person company and give
with cute, whimsical and beautiful holiday merthem
something to care for: a parakeet, fish, hamchandise every year, and everyone can always use
ster, turtle, or hermit crab. Include a few pet acnew decorations.
cessories like a how-to-care-for book, a cage, toys,
and food.
Visiting a close girlfriend
Catalog fun — Give your friend her favorite
mail order catalog and tell her to select a gift.
Ahead of time, fill out the credit card information
on the order form so the purchase is charged to
you, and indicate the maximum amount to spend.
Good story — Books on tape and large print
books are good options for the person who is unable to read regularly because of bad eyes. For the
avid card player, a deck of cards with large print
will work well.
Back in time — Enlarge and frame a special
Write on — Before you leave your friend’s
house, write a message of love and thanks on the and favorite old family photograph.
bathroom or bedroom mirror using lipstick. Or,
you can write with colored chalk on the driveway
Clean up — A gift certificate for a housecleanor sidewalk of her house.
ing service (or you can do it yourself!) is a handy
gift for the elder who has trouble keeping up with
Memory making — Create a scrapbook of the house.
photos, tokens, tickets, labels from favorite foods
and beverages consumed together, restaurant
Old friends — Host a holiday tea party or a
menu, or other activities you enjoyed together.
card game for your elderly friend and their
friends. Offer to pick up all of them.
Call on me — Give her a fun or funky telephone with a written promise that you will call
Visiting a relative
more often, or prepaid calling cards for her to call
you!
My favorite — Your aunt, grandmom, uncle or
Talk it out — Tape a friendship message on a cousin just fed you for a few days. In return, give
cassette thanking your friend for the hospitality them all the makings for their favorite meal or
and telling her how much she means to you. This drink, such as . . . margaritaville: tequila, margariis more ‘alive’ than a greeting card.
ta mix, margarita glass, salt, lime juice or limes; or
Italian night: homemade spaghetti sauce, pasta,
Parmesan, bottle of wine.
Visiting an acquaintance
Of interest — Send a current edition of a magSay, ‘cheese!’ — While you are a guest, take a
azine of interest to your acquaintance (craft, fash- roll of pictures of your visit, then send a nice phoion, computer, cars) along with a handmade or to album to your relatives with the pictures placed
computer generated certificate indicating that you inside.
ordered a year’s subscription as a gift.
A night out — Wrap up a restaurant gift certifiKeep in touch — Have personalized return ad- cate with a menu from that restaurant. You can
dress labels made. Include a decorative pen, blank also tape the certificate to a festive paper plate and
note cards or postcards, and a book of stamps.
attach a napkin and plastic fork/knife/spoon tied
together with colorful ribbon.
Return the favor — Put together a packet of
information about your town (upcoming events,
80 11:32:12 11/18/02
B
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Blue Tulip in Nassau Park in West Windsor offers myriad beautiful wrapping paper
and ribbon to dress up your holiday packages.
Festive Flourishes
Tuck your gifts in
wonderful wraps and embellishments
BY LORETTA SHERMAN
HETHER large or small, an attractively wrapped present can be as much
pleasure to give as it is to receive.
“The presentation of the gift adds to
the excitement of unwrapping it,” said Diane
Longmuir, owner of Diana’s Hallmark in Hamilton Township.
Gifts can be wrapped in just about anything
from printed fabric and velvet to tissue paper, aluminum foil, the Sunday comics and conventional
W
wrapping paper.
Before the advent of gift wrap, presents were
wrapped in plain muslin, a coarse cotton fabric.
They were tied with strips of fabric. During the
Victorian era, paper scraps manufactured in England and Germany were used to decorate gifts.
“They were like the stickers we have today. Paper scraps were individual pictures attached to
each other by a tab to make an entire sheet. They
See WRAP, Page 10
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
9
80 11:32:01 11/18/02
B
Wrap
Before the advent of gift wrap, presents were wrapped in plain muslin, a coarse cotton fabric. They were
tied with strips of fabric. During the Victorian era, paper scraps manufactured in England and Germany
were used to decorate gifts.
featured holiday pictures of perhaps Father Christmas,
holly, flowers, animals and fruits, etc ... People cut the
pictures out and removed the tabs,” said Denise Zemlansky, museum curator of the Kuser Farm Mansion, a
Queen Anne-style house museum in Hamilton Township. Before the holiday season, The Kuser Farm Mansion hosts programs about Christmas, workshops on
making Victorian Christmas holiday decorations and an
annual ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas’ Victorian
Christmas program. Call (609) 890-3630 for more information about events.
According to Ms. Zemlansky, there were no cardboard gift boxes then. Gifts were wrapped in brown paper. The paper scraps were glued to parcels for decoration. Since cellophane tape was nonexistent, ribbons
were tied around the bundle to keep the brown paper in
place. Yarn was another method used as gift wrap.
Ms. Zemlansky explained, “During the Victorian era,
‘wonderballs’ were a gift to a grandmother. It consisted
of many gifts wrapped with yarn that created a large
ball. When she received it, she would knit using the
yarn and her gifts would be revealed.”
Coincidentally, the Nestlé company manufactures a
21st century Wonderball. The concept is similar to the
Victorian model. However, this product is a foil wrapped hollow milk chocolate ball filled with small candies.
When the chocolate is broken the candies fall out.
Today, a host of prefabricated gift wrap and supplies
are available to help you create handsomely packaged
presents. To get your creative juices flowing, the Holiday Gift Wrap Sale 2002 Current catalogue, features
colorful gift wrap mediums such as holiday gift bags,
kraft paper with folksy designs, vellum and foil wrapping paper, drawstring bags, large gift sacks, unusually
shaped decorated gift boxes to package odd shaped
items like baked goods, and tissue paper and more. To
add a finishing touch to any gift, bows, stickers, curling
and wire edged ribbon and other accessories can also be
purchased.
The catalogue contains a wealth of information. Included are tips for creating unique package wraps, gift
wrapping themes, bow making and more. Current is a
mail order company that sells paper products to the public. For more information, visit its Web site at www.currentcatalog.com .
In addition to Current, area greeting card shops and
department stores carry an array of holiday gift wrap
supplies. According to Ms. Longmuir, Hallmark has
marketed a brand new line of gift wrap and gift bags, for
the winter holidays.
“These are upscale products with floral and pine and
berry designs. They target the consumer seeking a traditional and elegant look,” she said.
Embellishments are coordinated to match the designs
on the gift bags and wrap. Classic wraps and bags bearing Christmas plaids, holly and evergreen trees is also
available for those who want to package their gifts with
traditional Christmas designs. Iridescent and foil stars,
circles, stripes afford a contemporary look.
Gift wrap sporting an updated country theme that is
natural and homey looking is also accessible. “These are
plaids, snowman and patchwork designs. Four or five
different designs are available. Patterns coordinate with
each other,” Ms. Longmuir said.
Snowmen, Santa, elves and reindeer are mingled together in bright colors on gift paper for the younger set.
Since snowmen are a timeless and generic design for
the winter holidays, gift wrap with this design is perfect
to use on presents for a gift exchange. This year, Ms.
Longmuir noted Hallmark is featuring blue and white
snowmen in softer tones. Snowflake garlands can be
See WRAP, Page 11
Holiday
Gift Giving Ideas
from
The Cranbury Golf Club
and The Bog Restaurant
Give a gift of golf...
• Gift certificates for Golf Lessons by
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• Gift certificates for all of the latest
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• A membership at The Cranbury
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GOLF SHOP: 609-799-0341
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10
Holiday Gift Guide
November 19, 2002
80 10:47:20 11/18/02
B
For information on Blue Tulip gift wrapping
ideas and gift cards, see PAGE 18.
Wrap
used as adornments.
For Hanukkah, wraps feature blue and
silver colors and the popular Star of David design. Coordinated trim includes a
blue and silver menorah embellishment.
Bows, ribbon or snowflakes made from
ribbon are available.
Craft and fabric stores offer other avenues for finding interesting items to use
as decoration. Your home may also prove
to be a good source for finding decorations. Attractive buttons, leftover fabric
trim, lace, small ornaments and curling
ribbon can all be used as embellishments.
It is a good idea to collect all the materials you will need before wrapping
your presents. These include: a sharp
scissors, cellophane tape, a ruler, a pencil
or gel pen, your presents, gift boxes, gift
wrap, gift tags and ribbon. Be sure you
have cleared off a flat surface before
starting your project. If you have never
done it, wrapping a gift may be a harrowing experience. For how-tos, visit
www.marthastewart.com-Wrapping Gifts
and click on ‘The Perfect Package’ for illustration and instructions.
Or if you do not want to take the
plunge, Diana’s Hallmark will wrap your
gift.
“If you purchase your gift or gift wrapping supplies here we will wrap it for
free. If you purchased it somewhere else
we will charge to wrap it,” she said.
Another option to consider is having
your gifts wrapped by a charitable organization. Hadassah has been wrapping
gifts for a fee at the Quaker Bridge Mall
since 1986. Fees vary according to the
size of the box.
“All profits, are donated to Hadassah
and used for cancer research in the
Moshe Sharett block of the Hadassah
Hospital in Ein Karem, a town near Jerusalem,” said Sylvia Hirsh. Ms. Hirsh is in
charge of the gift wrap booth and a member of the Lawrence chapter. In addition,
she sits on the New Jersey Regional
Board of Hadassah.
The Lawrence, Princeton, Alissa, Village Grande and Trenton Hadassah chapters provide this service. The gift wrapping booth will be open beginning Dec. 7
through Christmas Eve. Christmas as
well as Hanukkah paper will be featured.
“Although Hanukkah falls out in November we will still be offering Hanukkah gift paper. Since some families celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas together,”
she said.
Generic gift wrap is also available for
other occasions such as birthdays, anniversaries and baby showers. The gift
wrap booth will be located on the upper
level between Lord and Taylor and J.C.
Penney department stores. For holiday
hours of operation, contact the Quaker
Bridge Mall.
The Hadassah welcomes new members. For information about joining, call
(609) 882-3815.
Elegant handmade papers are
for sale at Blue Tulip in Nassau
Park in West Windsor. For more
information, see PAGE 18.
609-683-8388
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November 19, 2002
Ad is 2835 Decipts Narrower Than Space FILL 2.35 3.75
Holiday Gift Guide
11
80 11:31:47 11/18/02
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Jingle Bells, Jingle Sells
It pays to be a savvy shopper
HETHER you’re in the market for the latest
high-tech gadget, a rare antique or fine jewelry, there are more ways to shop than ever
before. And no matter whether you shop by
telephone, catalog, in traditional retail stores or online, it
pays to be a savvy consumer. Here are some tips from
the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to help you shop
wisely.
Know who you’re dealing with. If you’re shopping
by catalog, phone or online, confirm an address and
phone number to contact if you have questions or problems. If you’ve never heard of the seller, check on its location and reputation with the Better Business Bureau or
the state attorney general’s office.
Protect your privacy. Provide personal information
only if you know who’s collecting it, why, and how it’s
going to be used. When online, look for the company’s
privacy policy, or ask the customer service representative when on the phone.
While online order only on a secure server. Look
for an unbroken key or padlock at the bottom of the
browser window to ensure your transmission is protected. Buy only from Web vendors that protect your financial information when you order online.
W
Guard your online passwords. Use different passwords when you’re making a purchase than you use to
log on to your computer or network.
Pay the safest way. A credit card offers the most
consumer protections.
Can you get your money back? Check out refund
and return policies before you buy.
Read the fine print. When shopping online, sometimes key restrictions on a sale are contained in the “fine
print” on a Web site. Take some time to click on any hyperlinks leading to warranty or rebate information, additional costs, or other key information you should know
about before you buy online. Check around the site
since this information may be buried under a general
link, for example under “Terms and Conditions.”
Check delivery dates. When you place an order, the
vendor usually tells you when to expect delivery. A
Federal Trade Commission rule requires sellers to ship
items as promised or within 30 days after the order date,
when no specific date is promised. If the seller can’t
ship the goods within the promised or 30-day deadline,
the seller must notify you, give you a chance to cancel
your order and provide a full refund if you’ve chosen to
cancel. The seller also has the option of cancelling your
order and refunding your money.
Review warranties. Many high-tech gadgets and appliances come with warranties. You have the right to review a warranty before you purchase a product. For
warranty information online, look for hyperlinks leading
to the full warranty, or to an address where you can obtain a free copy. Reading the warranty before you buy
can help you understand exactly what protection you’ll
get should something go wrong later. If a copy of the
warranty is available online, print it out when you make
your purchase and keep it with your records.
Compare prices. Look for price-matching policies.
Some merchants will match, or even beat, their competitors’ prices. Read the merchant’s pricing policy carefully. It may not apply to all items. Go online to check out
internet sites that compare prices for items offered online.
Check shipping and handling fees. Don’t forget to
factor these into the cost of the order and choose the delivery option that best meets your needs and budget.
Order early to allow plenty of time for shipment
and delivery.
See SHOPPING, Page 13
A Christmas Tradition Begins at
Here You Will Experience
Christmas At Its Finest
• Lavishly Decorated Trees 2 ft. to 10 ft.
• Custom Wreaths & Centerpieces
Designed Especially For Home or Office
• Dept. 56 – Byers Choice
• Chistopher Radko Collectibles
• And So Much More!
Special Purchase
71/2 Ft. Green Pine Tree
$179.95
(No assembly required – limited quantity)
Highway 27, North Brunswick
(732) 297-1244
Open Monday-Saturday 10-6; Sunday 10-5
12
Holiday Gift Guide
Ad is 2815 Decipts Narrower T
November 19, 2002
80 11:31:34 11/18/02
B
Shopping
holiday highlights
Do your research. Ask family, friends or co-workers
for recommendations on retailers, whether online or offline. Some items like jewelry can be expensive. The cost
of jewelry depends a lot on the type of piece it is. Familiarize yourself with some key terms before you shop, for
example, “natural,” “laboratory-created,” “imitation,”
“gold,” “gold-plated.” These can make big cost differences. When buying a diamond, consider the “4C’s” —
cut, color, clarity, and carat weight — because each factor affects the price.
Track your purchases. Keep printouts of the Web
pages with details about the transaction, including any
warranties, or return and refund policies if you’re not
satisfied. If shopping by telephone or catalog, keep records of your order: the company’s name, address and
phone number; the date of your order; a copy of the order form you sent to the company or a list of the items
ordered and their stock codes, the order confirmation
codes and the ad or catalog from which you ordered.
Keep receipts. You may need them to return an item
or to reconcile your credit card statement. Ask for gift
receipts to include with your gift.
The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent,
deceptive and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers
spot, stop and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get
free information on consumer issues, visit www.ftc.gov
or call toll-free, (877) FTC-HELP.
GIVE THE
Multi-coloring techniques mixing
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ver struggle with what to buy
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Princeton
609-683-9776
Feel the Hyatt Touch®
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
13
2MG1401A1119
80 11:31:22 11/18/02
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All I Want
For the Holidays...
Magic of DEPARTMENT 56
Famous for its collectible figurines and villages,
DEPARTMENT 56’s finely crafted lighted villages
come in 11 different series. Bottom right: Lit
house is part of the four-piece collection, “Kissing
Clause Lane,” a car arrives just in time for a
Christmas delivery. DEPARTMENT 56 Snowbabies
collection features an animated music box, Dance
of the Sugar Plum Fairy, about $75, top left; and
Snowbell, bottom left, about $16.50.
14
Holiday Gift Guide
November 19, 2002
2MG1501A1119
80 11:31:06 11/18/02
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Make memories last a lifetime
when you share the gift of cherished collectibles
BY PAULA L. MOLINO
FTEN the holiday spirit fizzles
with the dilemma of not knowing what to buy combined with
the stress of crowded stores and
limited time.
BAH! HUMBUG! Holiday shopping
can be stress free. Consider collectibles
— the perfect gift for the avid collector
or hard-to-buy for person. Collectibles is
serious business and can extend long
after the fruitcake has dried out, the tree
needles have dropped, and toy batteries
are dead.
From villages to figurines to ornaments, there is a vast selection of collections to satisfy the pickiest giver or receiver. “A large percentage of customers
are collectors or buying for someone who
collects,” said Donna Higgins, co-owner
with her husband, Barry, of Tomorrow’s
Treasures in Mercerville. She stated that
collectibles sell year round, especially
Department 56 Villages and Snowbabies,
crystal animals like Crystal World, baby
dolls, Boyds Bear Country, and beer
steins.
Famous for its collectible figurines and
villages, DEPARTMENT 56’s finely
crafted lighted villages come in 11 different series. Choose the charm of the 1800s
in New England Village or a whimsical
fairytale theme in Storybook Village.
Some buildings boast smoking chimneys
and movable parts like ice skaters twirling on a pond. With a complete line of
accessories including mailboxes, people
and trees, a whole town can come alive in
miniature form, reminiscent of a train
garden. The collection can become more
valuable as pieces are retired yearly. A
detailed display of village series can be
viewed at Tomorrow’s Treasures, recognized as one of the top 130 dealers of Department 56 in the United States. The advantage to villages is that they can be
enjoyed throughout the winter, eliminating the mad dash to dismantle decorations Jan. 2.
Small figurines such as Snowbabies,
Crystal World or Precious Moments are a
thoughtful gift for all age groups. Snowbabies are tiny porcelain bisque figures
with hand-painted faces and frosty bodies. Crystal World offers miniature figurines made of Austrian crystal that sell
for $15 to $800. At Hallmark, Precious
Moments has been a steady collectible
through the years as it spans all ages. A
customer might start a collection as a
baby gift and add to life milestones such
as birthday, graduation and wedding.
Or perhaps delicate carriages handcrafted from real eggs (a la Faberge),
miniature replicas of period costume
shoes, or Seraphim Classics angels might
suit your chosen Pollyanna.
For collectors of African American art,
O
Ebony Visions’ figurines by Thomas
Blackshear combines Art Nouveau and
African culture. The Maasai collection
represents the plains people of Kenya.
These collections are available at Tomorrow’s Treasures and sell for $50 to $600.
In the true spirit of the season, nothing
belts out Christmas tunes quite as heartily
as that collection of merry carolers.
Handmade in Chalfont, Pa., Byers’
Choice Carolers are a unique collection
of handmade figurines. Known for their
individual character and personality, utilizing various materials and artistic techniques, no two carolers are alike.
Designed for holiday decorating, carolers are dressed in Victorian era costume
in lines such as “Cries of London,” and
“A Christmas Carol” complete with chain
rattling Marley’s ghost. Similar to villages, when grouped together, carolers
make an impressive display surrounded
by lampposts, benches, and fresh greens
sprinkled with snow. Carolers are fun
collectibles to give as the “family” grows
with each addition. An average caroler
retails for $60.
Continuing along traditional Christmas
themes, cheery variations of St. Nick in
the Clothtique or Pipka Santas collections
can bring a twinkle to the eyes of young
and old. Nativity sets designed by Lenox,
Dept. 56’s Little Town of Bethlehem, or
Fontanini bring the true meaning of
Christmas into the home.
Dolls collectors will enjoy the American Girl Collection, new to Hallmark.
This popular series of dolls capturing the
spirit of five girls each representing a period in time, teaches modern girls history
in a fun way. The line includes miniature
storybooks, figurines, stationery, pens
and pencils, a camera, and even a china
tea set. Jeff Higgins, district manager for
Hallmark said, “The whole line is meant
to accent the doll collection which has
gained increased awareness in the last
few months.”
Dolls in every shape and size line the
shelves and floors of Tomorrow’s Treasures crying, “Take me home.” The playwith-everyday dolls start at $15. Doll art- New to the 2002 Hallmark Keepsake Ornament Collection is “Love Lives On.” A
ists such as Aston Drake, which can beaded fabric frame turns an image into a priceless family ornament. A Gold Crown
range up to $1200, are for the serious col- Exclusive, about $12.95.
lectors.
Hallmark, long known for its Keepsake
Ornaments Collection, has die-hard collectors anxious to add to the ever-fashionable Barbie or classic Disney series.
The collection started in the mid 1970s
with small handcrafted ornaments and
now has expanded to 10 series. The current trend is in the Pop Culture series depicting such licensed characters as I Love
Lucy, Star Wars, Harry Potter and famous sports celebrities.
See KEEPSAKE, Page 16
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
15
80 13:15:05 11/18/02
B
Keepsake
Mother/daughter friendship ornaments come in a
boxed set — one to give, one to keep. A wonderful gift
for a good cause is the “Angel of Comfort” ornament
where $2 of the sale of each ornament is donated to the
Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
Ornaments are an ideal gift and an inexpensive way
to start a collection, capturing a lifetime of memories.
Keepsake Ornaments range in price from $10 to $42 depending upon function and detail.
Joyce Schiff, director of marketing for Hallmark said,
“People like collecting no matter what economical range
they are in.” She said that whether it is Beanie Babies or
ornaments, everybody likes them and it is enjoyable to
give gifts to people who collect.
Shopping is easier if you have an idea of the person’s
interest. Do they collect anything? Do they enjoy gardening, golf, sports or cartoon characters? What kind of
gift will make them happy? Still miffed about what to
give? Merchants offer these suggestions:
● For grandparents — villages, carolers, shoes, angels, candles, Lenox, eggs
For holiday village styling tips, see PAGE 17
Ornaments are an ideal gift and an inexpensive way to
start a collection. Hallmark Keepsake Ornaments start
from as low as $12.
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Roping ✳ Poinsettias
Ribbons and decorations
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alk through our
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Daily 9-5 until Thanksgiving ✺ Call for Holiday Hours ✺ (609) 924-5770
16
Holiday Gift Guide
● For men — villages, lighthouses, resin animals and
birds, trains, made in Germany beer steins or nutcrackers, or Anheuser Busch limited collection of Clydesdale
horses
● For women — teddy bears, Lenox, villages, wooden houses (like Sheila’s collectibles), dolls, candles,
shoes
● For teens — dolls, Beanie Babies, bears
For children — Beanie Babies, bears, animals, dolls
(for girls), trains (for boys)
● For all ages — animals from any collection (plush,
ceramic), ornaments, angels, Christmas themes
“If you have no idea of what to give, a Yankee Candle is a good fallback,” said Jennifer Wood, store manager at Hallmark in Quakerbridge Mall.
Shopping early is recommended, as certain product
lines sell out quickly. Although it is said that friends
make the best presents, friends who purchase collectibles are the very best kind.
Paula L. Molino is a free-lance writer and frequent
contributor to Packet Publications. She enjoys writing
about fashion, home and garden.
November 19, 2002
80 10:57:20 11/18/02
B
“Buy a Brick” for
Lawrenceville Mainstreet
Create A Piece Of History
Help Pave The Main Street Sidewalk
Your contribution buys a brick which will be
engraved with your personalized message.
Name
Phone
Address
State
City
Zip
Please PRINT in UPPER CASE letters:
4” x 8”
Brick
Larger Size And
Larger Bricks
Available
$50 for 1 Line Engraved
$75 for 2 Lines Engraved
$100 for 3 Lines Engraved
Please make check payment to Lawrenceville Mainstreet and mail to:
Lawrenceville Mainstreet, Brick Campaign, 17 Phillips Ave., Lawrenceville, NJ 08648
The Hallmark Family Tree base is a striking silhouette. Use it to display your family’s history. Add photos to the ornament frames, hang
them on the tree and remember those who mean most to you all yearlong. About $39.95.
A perfect everlasting gift
Remember Loved Ones • Birthdays • Special Dates
For more information call 609-219-9300
It Takes a Village
Styling tips for your holiday collectibles
Y
BY PAULA L. MOLINO
OU can create a magical village for all
your holiday guests to enjoy. All it takes
is a few shops, home or a church, complementary accessories and a bit of imag-
ination.
CITY Style — Choose a village series that appeals to you such as Dickens’ Village Victorian
England, the cozy chalets of Alpine Village or the
North Pole where Christmas never ends. Some
buildings are compatible in architectural style and
can be combined. The Original Snow Village is
larger in scale and should stand alone.
LAND For Sale — Select an adequate space
with good visibility such as a wide mantelpiece,
top of an entertainment center or accent table.
ELEVATED Spaces — Utilize white Styrofoam blocks or boxes (that buildings come in),
creating elevation and dimension, simulating
mountains and valleys. For a winter wonderland
landscape, cover with white fabric topped with a
white snow blanket (available in rolls at craft
stores).
BUILDING Code — Position buildings high
and low to create interest (church at the top of the
hill, shops down in the valley, etc.). Arrange
groupings of odd number of buildings for a more
interesting display.
CITY Lights — Connect light cords of each
building together, plugging into one extension
cord. Add lampposts or other lighted accessories.
One general plug to light up the whole town is
easier than numerous cords.
LAND & Lakes — For a small ice-skating
pond, lay a small mirror on top of the snow blanket, hiding edges with white cotton. Invite skating
figurines to give it a whirl. For larger bodies of
waters, Barry Higgins, of Tomorrow’s Treasures
in Mercerville, suggests cutting tin foil to desired
water shape. Place blue plastic wrap over tin foil.
Small vessels appear to bob in a blue sparkling
lake.
NATURAL Elements — Stone fences,
benches, and street lamps all add realism to your
village. Create texture by arranging fresh or silk
pine branches, and varying height of trees as backdrops behind buildings and scattered throughout
and around the edges of town.
VILLAGE People — Arrange figurines and
transportation for true-to-life street scenes with
sledding children, skiers sshhing down the mountain, family travelers at the depot, lovers taking a
stroll or a carriage ride.
LET It Snow — Sprinkle handfuls of synthetic
fresh falling snow a top the entire village.
LIGHTS On — Plug it in and watch the city
come to life.
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
17
80 10:57:05 11/18/02
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Express Your Holiday Style with Blue Tulip Papers
APER is an age-old mode of
communication. The beauty of
paper and its ability to convey
sentiment makes it perfect for
holiday gifting and greetings. This season, Blue Tulip in Nassau Park Pavilion
is home to holiday paperland. Paper merchant Lisa Heller explains the ways in
which paper can individualize holiday
greetings, wrappings and gifts in surprising ways.
Worldly wrappings
One of the most extensive handmade
paper collections is right here in Princeton; Blue Tulip’s handmade papers —
like marbled momis from Thailand, and
reversible unryu (red on one side and
green on the other) — give Hanukkah
and Christmas presents the look of treasures. A shopper can combine favorite
handmade paper with a rare ribbon in a
vibrant or textured color to fit the gift-receiver’s style. Japanese organdy, Frenchwired ribbons, and hand-dyed silks in all
kinds of colors and designs match Blue
Tulip’s papers for unexpected and exquisite wrappings.
From Warhol To Santa
Funky gift wrap prints abound at Blue
Tulip — from Andy Warhol holiday
wrap to smiling Santas to Jetsons’ Christmas wrap.
For the art lover
Art fanatics will love the gift of paper
P
18
Holiday Gift Guide
Blue Tulip’s handmade and boxed greeting card collections include something for
everyone — for the serious, the playful, the artistic, and the contemporary.
and cloth — everything from hand-bound
books made from vintage scarves to
hand-embellished cards wrapped in organza bags will delight artistic friends
and family. Sheets of handmade paper
rolled and wrapped in ribbon make a
unique gift. For the do-it-yourselfers,
November 19, 2002
Blue Tulip goes a step farther to offer gift
certificates for paper arts workshops like
Album-Making and Making Books From
A Single Sheet of Paper, taught by local
artisans.
Magic, playful paper
For the fun-loving commitment-phobe,
Blue Tulip offers a series of paper gifts to
play with on a whim. Doodle Therapy is
a kit with everything one needs to become a master procrastinator. Equally as
entertaining is a paper Zen Board — the
evolved Etch-A-Sketch — a board made
of magic paper which, when painted on
with its paint brush, shows your art as it
slowly evaporates from black to grey to
invisible as it dries. For the truly flaky,
Blue Tulip’s Christmas Tree Poster offers
an alternative for those who never seem
to make it to the Christmas tree lot. A
perfect gift for those who notoriously
hate to make a commitment.
Personalized cards in three days
Blue tulip’s boxed cards, which can
still be customized in-store within three
days, include contemporary selections
from New York’s Museum of Modern
Art, photography cards with colorful borders, various designs for the dog-lover,
the snow-lover, the artistic, and the elegant, as well as more traditional options
from Cranes and others. The shop’s sales
associates will help you find holiday
cards that fit your style, and then print
them with the words to say exactly what
you want them to.
Blue Tulip is located on Nassau Park
Boulevard, Nassau Park Pavilion, West
Windsor. Hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday
from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. For information,
call (609) 720-1005.
80 10:56:49 11/18/02
B
Happy Holidays! Gift Ideas from Mrs. G!
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LC 13 B2UA $969
LC 15 B2UA $1199
LC 20 B2UA $1899
LLC 30 B2UA $4799
Prices good thru 12/24/02
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TV & APPLIANCES
GUARANTEED LOW PRICES
609-882-1444
Open 7 Days • Mon – Fri 9-9 • Sat 9-6 • Sun 11-5
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
19
80 10:56:38 11/18/02
B
LAWRENCE
Convenient
Safe
Friendly
Many New Stores...
...And Better Than Ever
BUY
ONE
GET
ONE
Serving Mercer County
for over 17years
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• Gift Certificates Available •
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Looking good doesn’t have to cost a lot
Give A Book As A Gift
This Holiday
Gift Certificates Available
609-882-3760
20
Holiday Gift Guide
(Single Application-Style & Blow Dry Extra)
With this coupon. Long hair extra, Not valid w/other offer.
Fine Lingerie
Lawrence Shopping Ctr.
Lunch Served: Mon.-Sat. 11:30-3:00
Dinner Served: Mon.-Sat. 5:00-9:00
Lawrence Shopping Center
Free Hair Cut
with any Perm, Color or Highlights
771-3700
November 19, 2002
Texas Ave. & Route 1,
Lawrenceville, NJ 08648
609-406-0031
(609) 883-8088
SALE ENDS 12/30/02.
NOT VALID WITH ANY OTHER OFFERS OR DISCOUNTS.
80 10:56:24 11/18/02
B
SHOPPING CENTER
Wildlife and Pet Artist
Sherri A.
Strikwerda
Come Meet The Artist
LAWRENCE SHOPPING CENTER
LAWRENCEVILLE
(609) 882-2823
883-2401
Cambio Jeans
Knits
Leather
Evening Wear
Mon, Wed, Fri 10-6
Tues & Thurs 10-8, Sat 10-5
Sat., Nov. 30th
10 am to 5 pm
Lawrence
Gallery
Lawrence Center, U.S. No. 1
& Texas Ave.,
609-883-2401
Bridal
Gowns
Just in Time for the Holidays
Buy One
Gift Certificate and
Get One 50% OFF
offer expires 1/31/02
By Appointment
Open Monday thru Saturday
e-mail:
[email protected]
Bridesmaids
Flower Girls
Bridal
Accessories
609-882-2821
30% off Sale
Now thru Nov. 30th, 2002
Paul’s Step by Step
Children’s Footwear & Apparel
Lawrence Shopping Center • 609.637.0700
www.stacysbridal.com
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
21
80 13:15:20 11/18/02
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Pretty as a Picture
Elegant china and accessories
help set your holiday table aglow
BY SALLY FRIEDMAN
OU’VE admired the gorgeous
table settings at other people’s
homes, and wondered how they
did it.
You’ve been dazzled by the beauty of
holiday tables at upscale restaurants and
hotels. But you assume that never, ever
could you replicate them.
Think again.
With the help of some experts, we’ve
assembled some ideas and table-top looks
that will give your home the glow of the
holidays — and convince your guests that
you’ve spent long hours creating these
tableaux.
Your secret can be that it’s all in
knowing the how-to’s of what to buy —
and how to display it.
Lenox China, with its almost endless
variety of patterns and styles of tableware, can provide the look of Christmas
with many of its specialty patterns, some
bedecked with holly, others adorned with
charming angels or even robust plaids in
reds and greens.
According to Bethany Bullard, brand
development associate for Lenox, you
can choose to mix and match holiday pat-
Y
Lenox 2002 holiday china features Winter Greetings Scenic, an elaborately decorated series with charming birds as the motif.
terns in numerous ways, from creating table settings from several harmonizing
patterns to introducing lively bursts of
pure color on an otherwise monochromatic scheme.
Accent plates, mugs, holiday figures,
many created new for the 2002 holiday
season — all are available to create a festive spirit without breaking the bank.
From carafes to serving bowls, hosts
can choose Lenox’s simple Holiday nouveau pattern, with its simple sprigs of
holly, to the more lavish Winter Greetings Scenic, an elaborately decorated series with charming birds as the motif.
Holiday stemware can be as simple as
emerald green and ruby red goblets, to
barware festooned with hand painted red
bows.
Lenox china ornaments that can create
a mood from the whimsical to the elegant
are also available and run the gamut from
nativity figures to jolly Santas, snowflakes and snowmen. To make the entire
holiday entertaining season easier on
hosts, Lenox provides practical pointers
in its gift catalogue. Consider these exSee CHINA, Page 23
Edith’s Lingerie
344 Nassau Street
Princeton, NJ
(609) 921-6059
PRE HOLIDAY
BLOW-OUT
SALE
30% Off
Most Bras
40% Off
Everything Else
Closing
February 15, 2003
22
Holiday Gift Guide
November 19, 2002
80 10:56:18 11/18/02
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China
Lenox China, with its almost endless variety of
patterns and styles, can
provide the look of Christmas with many of its specialty patterns, some bedecked with holly, others
adorned with angels or
even robust plaids in reds
and greens.
amples:
● If time is short, cook the main course, and buy the
extras from the local gourmet shop.
● Mix color with crystal for an eclectic look.
● Select music ahead of time, and appoint a friend to
keep those CDs coming.
● Mix old and new china and accessories to create an
interesting look.
When the Four Seasons Hotel in Philadelphia sets a
private party table, you can be sure it’s done in impeccable style. The fabled hotel on the city’s Benjamin
Franklin Parkway is known for its elegance and grace,
and two of the people responsible for that reputation recently offered their suggestions for setting beautiful holiday tables at home.
Banquet manager Rick DeLuca and veteran waiter
Nick Saravino used a Four Seasons meeting room dining table as their “canvas,” creating a table that they insist can be replicated easily at home.
The starting point: A damask cloth of red and gold to
establish a festive look. “And you can simply buy inexpensive fabric to drape on your table,” suggests Mr.
DeLuca. “The cloth is just a backdrop for what comes
next.” Coordinating — but not matching — napkins
keep the senses engaged.
In this case, gold charger plates, that often shelter dinner plates, establish a formal holiday table. But that formality is lightened by the choice of a simple bowl of
See CHINA, Page 24
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
23
Palmer Square’s
gift to you...
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Avoid the holiday shopping madness! Come to
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Christmas
December 25
I C I FA S H I O N F O R C H I L D R E N
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B
PalmerSquare
80 10:55:43 11/18/02
P R I N C E T O N
D O W N T O W N
Photo by Sally Friedman
Banquet manager Rick DeLuca of the Four Seasons Hotel in Philadelphia says of setting a holiday table, “The most important ‘rule’
is to forget rules and just do whatever creates a wonderful look
and feel.”
China
fruit as a centerpiece. And the lower the bowl, the better. “Arrangements look better — and balance better — in vessels that aren’t very
tall,” Mr. DeLuca pointed out.
Mr. DeLuca and Mr. Saravino like the utter simplicity of pears
and pomegranates, with clusters of grapes setting them off. But they
also like to arrange flowers as individual centerpieces, rather than
using one large arrangement. “It’s a lovely look, and makes everyone at the table feel special,” Mr. Saravino says.
Other suggestions from these tabletop artists:
● Consider using fabric runners instead of a cloth on your holiday
table.
●
Think candles. They create a mood that nothing else can.
AEROSOLES
MON-WED
KITCHEN KAPERS
10 am - 6 pm
BANANA REPUBLIC
THURS & FRI
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S AT & S U N
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10 am - 6pm
PLUS 40 OTHER
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FINE STORES AND
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R E S TA U R A N T S
Nov 29 – Dec 31
Monday – Saturday
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nights after 5pm and
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all day Sunday with
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a Palmer Square
WITHERSPOON ST.
HULFISH ST.
CHAMBERS ST.
P
NASSAU ST.
P R I N C E T O N
24
● For unique holiday tea table-tops, assemble interesting hatboxes
or antique gloves and purses.
● Go for utter simplicity with a centerpiece of beautiful lemons or
red/green/yellow peppers.
Dec. 16-21
10 am - 9 pm
COACH STORE
D
● Holiday placemats — especially informal ones — can create a
whole different and whimsical holiday mood.
Holiday Gift Guide
store validation
Palmer Square, Princeton, New Jersey
800.644.3489 www.palmersquare.com
Convenient from Routes 1, 206, 27, 95 and 295
November 19, 2002
“Holiday table decorating can go from the most elaborately formal to the most delightfully plain,” adds Mr. DeLuca. “The most
important ‘rule’ is to forget rules and just do whatever creates a
wonderful look and feel.”
80 10:51:51 11/18/02
B
Ha
!
ays
d
i
l
Ho
Toy Smarts
Best toys of 2002 encourage
imaginative play and learning
BY RUTH B. ROUFBERG
HIS year has been a bonanza for great toys.
Among the highlights are many fine wooden toys at modest prices, toys that stimulate
imaginative play, and an electronic learning
aid that brings geography to life. Phone numbers
and web site addresses (if available) are listed for
help in locating a retailer or learning more about
the toys.
T
Knock Knock Blocks don’t really knock. They
are actually 16 soft building blocks made of cotton-covered foam. Eight cubes have textures ranging from smooth satin to ridged corduroy. Eight
triangular blocks are covered with black-andwhite patterns. Babies clutch them and explore behind the peek-a-boo door and window flaps. Toddlers build row houses or towers, and play filland-dump with the vinyl carrying case. Preschoolers use them to learn colors and counting. Ages
newborn to 2 1 2 years $25. (IQ Baby / Small
World Toys, 800-421-4153, www.smallworldtoys.com.)
blocks. When stacked with all 10 blocks
children can learn to identify colors, count stars,
name shapes, and make the sounds of the barnyard
animals. Ages 2 years and up, $18. (WJ Fantasy,
800-222-7529, wjfantasy.com.)
Puzzle House combines house-building and
shape-sorting. Insert the four corner posts into the
base, and the side walls easily glide into place.
Each has a window or door opening into which
See TOYS, Page 26
The Impressionist Art Game is a
treasure for the entire family.
While children become acquainted with
masterpieces of five Impressionists
through a picture card game,teens and adults
learn the history ofImpressionism
from an accompanying
book.FromBirdcageBooks,
above.
Colors, Counting, Shapes & Animals Building Blocks are a visually stunning set of nesting
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
25
80 10:51:32 11/18/02
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Toys
appropriate shapes can be inserted, and pegs on top to
hold the roof in place. The sun, moon, star, and rain
cloud can fit on rooftop pegs or go through matching
rooftop openings. When play is done, the small pieces
store inside the house. The base measures 7-by-8 inches,
and all the wood pieces are at least 1 ⁄ 2 -inch thick. Ages
3 years and up, $25. (Battat, 800-822-8828, www.battattoys.com.)
Colors, Counting, Shapes & Animals Building Blocks are a visually stunning set of nesting
blocks for ages 2 and up, from
WJ Fantasy.
Latches Board satisfies children’s curiosity about
what goes on behind closed doors — and more important, how to open them! Real brass hardware of six
kinds opens a barn door, window, front door, farm gate,
toy chest, and storage trunk and reveals what’s inside or
behind each. Wood, nearly 12 x 15 inches. Ages 3 years
and up, $20. (Melissa and Doug’s Classic Wooden Toys
from Lights, Camera, Interaction!, 800-284-3948.)
Hollow Castle Blocks are more versatile than their
name implies. Yes, they build an endless variety of
castle configurations with such specialized shapes as
crenellated towers, four-way arches, and steps, but you
can also make a modern house with a window-wall by
facing the hollow sides outward. One tester thought the
red pyramid looked like a church steeple, and another
built a fort with a crenellated tower lookout. These
beautifully-finished blocks are made in Thailand from
replenishable rubberwood free of preservatives. 30
blocks in eight shapes. Ages 3 and up. $40. (Plan Toys /
Brio, 888-274-6869, www.briotoy.com.)
Puppet Playhouse is a fully-functioning theater in a
box. Insert your hand through the bottom into the builtin puppet glove. Select one of the 15 plays in the attached book, press the matching Velcro-backed puppet characters onto the glove, and you’re ready to perform!
After our testers saw their teacher do it a couple of
times, they eagerly took turns, sometimes using the
plays included, sometimes improvising their own dramas with the more than 25 puppet characters available.
Ages 3 years and up (but 4 and up for child to use), $20,
(Innovative Kids, 203-838-6400, www.innovativekids.com.)
See TOYS, Page 27
A Great Place To Shop For The Unique
And Antique, Special Or Spectacular
SKAGEN
IS HERE...
WATCHES
FOR MEN
& WOMEN
Montgomery Shopping Center
924-3355
1325 Rt. 206 • Skillman, NJ 08558 • (609)
Mon., Tues., Wed., Fri., Sat. – 10-6 • Thursday 10-8 • Sunday 11-5
26
Holiday Gift Guide
November 19, 2002
Why shop the Mall - when for
that really important gift you
can “Step Back in Time” in
Downtown Hightstown. For
Gifts that are appreciated
and appreciate we have a
unique selection.
An everchanging stock of
Collectibles, Decorative Accents
and Furnishings from Empire
to Art Deco and Primitives to
Prim & Proper.
Sale 20% - 50% OFF
Selected Items of Furniture
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Architectural Antiques
and Furnishings
Now located just 2 minutes from Exit 8 NJ Turnpike on
Rte. 33 West at 132 Franklin St., Hightstown
Open 5 days - Wednesday thru Sunday
and by appointment Wednesday & Thursday Evenings
Phone: (609) 426-1910
NJ’s Largest collection of Antique Stained Glass Windows
100s in Stock-Including a Few Extraordinary Handpainted Examples
80 10:50:42 11/18/02
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Toys
Making Mini-Books is packed with ultra-clear instructions for creating a Lilliputian library. Styles range
from simple stapled books with decorated covers to
such unusual ones as a “heavy metal” book with a cover
made from a hardware store hinge, books to wear as
necklaces, and scroll books wrapped around toothpicks.
Included are specialized supplies and a collection of really cool papers with varied patterns and textures. One
look at the pictures on the contents page will set the creative juices flowing Ages 7 years and up, $20. (Klutz,
800-737-4123, www.klutz.com.)
Race to the Roof is a game of pursuit from basement
to attic, but there are detours en route. Roll the die and
move forward that number of spaces. But a player who
rolls a “6”draws a chance card, which shows an object
that is somewhere in the house. The player must locate
the object and move her pawn to that room, which may
mean leaping ahead or going backwards. The game is
suspenseful until the very end because any player can
come from behind and win. In addition to picturematching, children learn logical thinking, as they decide
whether to search for the muffins, for example, in the
GeoSafari USA Search succeeds by focusing on
bathroom, bedroom, kitchen, or playroom. Ages 5-10 only one subject (geography) and doing it with encycloyears. $20. (Ravensburger, 800-886-1236, www.Raven- pedic thoroughness. No flashing lights or fanfares, just a
sburger.com.)
clear, pleasant-voiced guide who provides information
about states and capitals, U.S. landmarks, and our naThe Impressionist Art Game is a treasure for the en- tion’s natural wonders on which the player touches a
tire family. While children become acquainted with special pen to the 12-by-18-inch interactive map. Other
masterpieces of five Impressionists through a picture features include 10 quizzes (for one or two players), a
card game played like “Go Fish,” teens and adults learn road trip game using longitude, latitude, and directional
from the accompanying book how Impressionism devel- clues, and a booklet with detailed map and pencil-andoped. A double-page spread matching each picture card paper activities. Ages 8 and up, $100. (Educational Inshows what to look for in each painting, explains artists’ sights, 800-995-4436, www.edin.com.)
materials, and reveals how they achieved special effects.
Ruth B. Roufberg is a toy consultant and juror for the
Sample pages can be seen on the company website,
www.birdcagebooks.com Ages 7 years and up, $25. Parents’ Choice Toy Awards. Her toy reviews are pub- Making Mini-Books is packed with instructions for crelished by many parenting publications.
(Birdcage Books, 650-424-1701.)
ating a small library. Styles range from simple stapled
books with decorated covers to a ‘heavy metal’ book
with a cover made from a hardware store hinge to
books to wear as necklaces, from Klutz.
Chambers Walk Café
since 1986
Lunch Break? Chambers Walk.
... Ahhhhhhhhhh!
Lunch at Chambers Walk Café is more than
a midday break. It’s fresh, delicious food,
casual atmosphere and great service. Try our
hearty, homemade soups, tasty sandwiches
and mouth-watering daily specials. Top
it off with a cappuccino brownie—
or one of our other famous desserts.
Looking for that perfect gift?
Chambers Walk Café gift certificates are available for lunch and dinner.
Chambers
Walk
C A F É
|
C A T E R I N G
LUNCH 11:30 AM – 2:30 PM MON – SAT • DINNER 6 – 9:30 PM FRI & SAT
AVAILABLE FOR PRIVATE DINNER PARTIES SUN – THURS
Delivering amazingly delicious food & service that doesn’t miss.
609-896-5995 • 2667 Main St., Lawrenceville, NJ • chamberswalk.com
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
27
BY PAT SUMMERS
OLIDAY meals are often locked
in long tradition: the golden
brown turkey (or decorated ham
or ...); the accompanying mashed
potatoes (or candied sweets or ...) and the
special desserts . . . The menu — when
was the last time it changed appreciably?
— really could be carved in stone. And
woe to s/he who frivolously alters it.
But the more things stay the same, the
more they change. Which is to say, someone is bound to adopt a vegetarian lifestyle, and someone else may learn s/he
has diabetes. There goes the menu that
could be reprinted year after (“more
white meat, please”) year.
Sorry, harried host: a brown rice-molded turkey is just not the answer for the
vegetarian guest at your holiday meal.
Nor is an invitation to the vegans in your
group to concentrate on veggies and JellO mold, or to eat everything except the
turkey (and the potatoes mashed with
cream and butter, and the gravy flavored
with giblets and. . .).
No, this feast day calls for basic information about vegetarians and their
food parameters — and the same goes for
80 10:50:03 11/18/02
B
H
Healthy Holidays
any others whose special food needs are
prompted by principle or health conditions.
Let’s start with feeding hungry vegetarians. To begin with, there are a variety
of vegetarian diets, and it’s only smart to
find out which one your friend or relative
has adopted. “Vegans” are total vegetarians, meaning they don’t eat any animal
foods at all. For them, scratch not only
the turkey or ham, but the shrimp cocktail
and butter and milk too.
“Lacto vegetarians” consume dairy
products as protein sources, while “lactoovo vegetarians,” thought to be the largest category in this country, eat eggs and
dairy foods.
The diet of “pesco vegetarians” includes fish as well as eggs and dairy, and
that for “semi-vegetarians” allows small
amounts of meat, fish or chicken.
The Thanksgiving holiday is all about
harvest and bounty, and the beauty of the
fruits, vegetables and grains available —
and people celebrating all that together.
To do so, they need not sacrifice an animal’s life. Starting with up-front questions about direction and preferences, tips
See HEALTHY, Page 29
Gather information on special diet needs
before gathering at the holiday table
Comfort, Meet Style.
Steppin’ Birkenstock Shoes
12 Chambers St., Princeton, NJ 08542
609-921-8411
Mon Closed;
Tues-Sat 10-6; Fri til 7; Sun 12-5
Another convenient location, Ridgewood, NJ
201-447-9960
www.StepInBirkenstock.com
28
Holiday Gift Guide
November 19, 2002
80 13:15:55 11/18/02
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Healthy
for feeding vegetarians abound. A few:
● Be flexible with side dishes — for
instance, substitute vegetable broth when
chicken broth is called for; leave meat
and meat drippings out of veggies and
soups.
● Make special versions — for example, make half of some dishes meatless. It
takes only thinking ahead.
● Invite a vegetarian guest to prepare
something special and bring it along for
others to try.
● Remember: it’s basically about people, not food. So avoid being judgmental
or behaving as if it means something
about you if a guest eats differently from
you.
The Internet is a rich source of ideas
and information about vegetarianism of
all degrees, including recipes. For starters, try www.VeganChef.com. And you
needn’t start building a library of vegetarian cookbooks, when an issue or two of a
monthly magazine like “Vegetarian
Times” can offer suggestions.
With some 16 million Americans diagnosed as having diabetes, a metabolic
disorder affecting how the body uses and
stores glucose, there’s good reason to be
aware of the dietary advice for this disease. By and large, in fact, recommendations made for diabetics are equally good
advice for the rest of us.
Those who take diabetes seriously al-
ready know that as important as the food
consumed may be its timing (best near a
usual meal time) and its conjunction with
recommended medication and activity.
Diabetics are often advised to eat small
quantities of holiday fare and concentrate
on veggies and fruit bowls — pretty good
advice for anyone, really. Eating light can
only help one move through the holiday
season.
It can be all about offering alternatives:
besides pumpkin pie, a host can offer a
bowl of fruit. Healthy hors d’oeuvres are
increasingly common options, and diabetics who know their diet prescription
— possibly even carrying a pocket reference — can select “free foods,” or those
with fewer than 20 calories per serving:
celery, cukes, mushrooms, and dill pickles, for example.
Other tips to help those with diabetes
to navigate the holidays:
● Maintain consistent meal times and
increase glucose monitoring during this
period.
● Prepare traditional recipes for cakes,
cookies and fruit breads with less sugar,
sugar substitutes, fruit or fruit juices.
● Monitor carbohydrates, which are as
important as sugar intake.
● Be actively aware of what’s added to
festive foods, such as maple syrup,
marshmallows, butter and cream soups.
Once again, the Internet and periodicals — besides the American Diabetes
Association —are replete with ideas for
Hagerty’s
Plant & Garden Center
Christmas Cactus, Cyclamen,
Kalanchoe, Amaryllis,
Paperwhite Kits, Wreaths,
Holiday Greens, and Bulb Gift Ideas
feeding diabetics and those with impaired
glucose tolerance. As always, the concept
of moderation applies.
The coming holiday season and its festive menus are fraught with the potential
perils of stress, fatigue and frustration.
They are worth anticipating and working
around. Far worse, however, especially at
holiday times, is the prospect of no
meals: Around the world, famine and
economic downturns continue to cause
individuals and families to go hungry.
We can address world hunger in myriad ways; the information and vehicles are
out there. Thinking globally can involve
thinking and acting locally — and
thereby being aware that here in Mercer
County, the number of people seeking
free meals has dramatically increased
since last year.
Spurred by that reality, the Mercer
Street Friends, a key link in the local
food supply chain, has launched a
“Check Out Hunger” campaign. Until
year’s end, coupons for $1, $3 and $5 donations can be found at the registers of
area supermarkets. Customers may
choose a denomination, which is added to
their shopping total. The amount scanned
benefits Mercer Street Friends and its
drive to assure food to those who need it
— for daily and holiday meals.
“Fine Quality Home Furnishings at Substantial Savings”
HUNDREDS OF MANUFACTURERS
www.riderfurniture.com
• Dining, Bedroom, Occasional
• Custom Upholstery
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ANNUAL POINSETTIA SHOW
OPEN HOUSE
Thanksgiving Weekend
Voted “Best Independently Owned Furniture Store
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Come take your
holiday photos
Shop & Compare for Quality, Price & Service
Plants make excellent gifts.
609-924-01 47
1 2-1 4 Main Str eet (Route 27) • Kin gston , NJ
Mon. - Fri. 10-6,Thurs. 10-8, Sat. 10-5, Sun. 12-4
S. Main Street, Cranbury, NJ 609-395-0660
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
29
2MG3001A1119
80 12:17:41 11/18/02
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The public is invited for a holiday skate at Rockefeller Center’s picturesque ice rink.
It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year
BY GLORIA HAYES KREMER
IKE Sleeping Beauty awakened by her prince’s
touch, New York City comes to life with a luminescence at holiday time unlike any other season.
Dressed up for the holidays, the city puts on a
sweeter, more gentle face.
From the giant Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade to
the dramatic ball drop at One Times Square on New
Year’s Eve, it’s a glitzy, sparkling city that welcomes
visitors with all the hoopla it can muster.
Out-of-towners mix with New Yorkers to gaze at
what’s billed as the world’s tallest Christmas tree at
Rockefeller Center — and also the dazzling ones at the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lincoln Center and
Trump Tower. Other perennial highlights are the sensational Christmas show at Radio City Music Hall, the
ageless “Nutcracker” performed by the New York City
Ballet and Dickens’ beloved “A Christmas Carol.”
And who wouldn’t be drawn to the imaginative decorated store windows along Fifth Avenue as an endless
parade of shoppers meanders by? Chic mannequins look
over onlookers and animated figures tell holiday stories
with recorded narration.
In addition to these time-honored happenings, New
York offers world-class events, extraordinary musical
performances, feasts from cultures around the world and
L
30
Holiday Gift Guide
unusual ideas for wintertime fun for the whole family.
In years past, the young ones drawn to the galaxy of
toys at FAO Schwarz can now be awed at the new Toys
R Us store with its indoor ferris wheel at Times Square.
Here are just some of the ways to celebrate the holidays
in New York City. Also listed are some accommodations from plain to fancy. The New York Convention
and Visitors Bureau has a toll-free, 24-hour information
line to order literature — (800) 692-8474. For time and
dates information, call 800-NYCVISIT or (212)
484-1222.
historic buildings of Old New York, Nov. 29-Jan. 5,
2003.
The Central Park Wildlife Center has polar bears,
Gus, Ida and Lilu opening gift boxes filled with holiday
treats, Saturdays and Sundays at 1 p.m. in December.
(212) 439-6527.
The Bronx Zoo’s annual Holiday Lights (Nov.
23-Dec. 18), Friday through Sunday nights only (Dec.
17-Jan. 6) feature giant illuminated animal sculptures,
ice carvings, choirs and special evening visits to animal
The Radio City Christmas Spectacular, starring the exhibits.
glamorous Rockettes, runs from Nov. 7-Jan. 5, 2003.
The Morgan Library offers its annual reading of
The legendary, high kickers are the centerpiece of a
90-minute extravaganza with live animals, the popular Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” plus the opportunity to
‘Parade of the Wooden Soldiers,’ and a stage full of view the original manuscript — one of the library’s
greatest treasures, (212) 590-0334.
dancing Santas. (212) 301-1000.
Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting stirs the heart
Madison Square Garden presents a New York scale
when the gigantic tree lights up at the magical moment presentation of “A Christmas Carol,” Nov. 29-Dec. 29,
on Dec.4.
(212) 307-7171.
Lincoln Center Tree Lighting Celebration is a joyVienna Boys Choir performs at Carnegie Hall,
ous affair as various groups feature dazzling performDec. 15, (212) 247-7800. New York Pops Holiday
ances on Dec. 2.
New York Botanical Garden presents a Holiday Celebration performs Dec. 20-21.
Garden & Train Show with a winter fantasyland of
lights with a model-train layout and reproductions of
See RADIO CITY, Page 31
November 19, 2002
80 12:18:23 11/18/02
B
For holiday fun,
New York City is the hottest
ticket around
“The Nutcracker” is performed by
the New York City Ballet at Lincoln
Center’s New York State Theater, Nov.
29-Jan. 5, (212) 870-5570.
Metro Mass Choir performs Gospel
Christmas concerts at The Town Hall,
Dec. 19-20, (212) 840-2824.
Annual Winter Festival celebrates at
Brooklyn’s historic Lefferts Homestead Dec. 1 at 1-4 p.m., (718) 789-2822.
Historic Richmond Town on Staten
Island recreates a Victorian Holiday
Celebration on Dec. 28, (718) 351-1611.
Holiday on the Hudson features figure-skating exhibition at The Sky Rink
at Chelsea Piers, (212) 336-6881.
Scandinavia House offers Nordic
culture with a Christmas Smorgasbord, Dec. 6, 7, 8, 12 and 14, (212)
-879-9779.
King Manor Museum presents A
Federal Christmas, Nov. 29-Dec. 29,
guiding visitors through decorated period
rooms with historic holiday settings,
(718) 206-0545.
KwanzaaFest is an African-American
cultural celebration of art, dance and music at the Jacob K. Javits Convention
Center, Dec. 20-22, (212) 216-2000.
A Giant Menorah is lit each night
during Hanukkah, Nov. 29-Dec. 6 at 5th
Ave. and 59th Street.
The 92nd Street Y hosts Make A
Menorah — For Families, Nov. 21-22,
as well as a Family Hanukkah Dinner,
Dec. 5, (212) 996-1100.
Big Onion Walking Tours guide visitors along a journey of Jewish immigration in its Twelfth Annual Jewish East
Side Tour on Christmas Day, (212)
439-1090.
Also, a Giant Snowflake suspends
above 67th Street and 5th Avenue, near
Bergdorf’s and Tiffany’s. Park Avenue
offers two miles of lighted trees. Fifth
Avenue is a vision of beautifully decorated windows. Macy’s at Herald Square
is home to ‘Santaland,’ Lord and Taylor and Saks Fifth Avenue have spectacular window designs.
HOLIDAY TOURS
Many tours are offered that include
narration in several languages. Among
the specialized tours are New York, New
York; New York by Flight; Harlem Gospel Tour; Soul Food and Jazz; And About
Brooklyn; Niagara Falls Day Tour;
Bronx and the Cloisters; The Triboro
Tour; and others. For information, call
(212) 391-0900.
The NY Skyride features the Empire
State Building in an action-packed big
screen simulated thrill ride; it features the
86th floor indoor and outdoor observation decks and the 102nd floor enclosed
tower viewing area, 10 a.m.-10 p.m.,
(212) 298-4922.
See RADIO CITY, Page 32
For more than 75 years, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has been
both celebrating America and calling forth the Christmas season.
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Phone: 609.397.9426
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3535 US Rt. 1 South
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Phone: 609.720.0990
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November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
31
80 12:18:02 11/18/02
B
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32
Holiday Gift Guide
November 19, 2002
Novotel, 226 W. 52nd St, accepts pets; (800)
221-3185.
CRUISES
St. Regis 2 E. 55th St., has afternoon tea; (800)
There are sightseeing cruises, evening cruises, 759-7550.
speedboat rides and music cruises through Dec. 22
from Pier 16 at South Street Seaport, (212)
Beekman Towers Suite Hotel,49th and 1st
563-3200.
Ave., (212) 355-7300 has studio apartments.
ACCOMMODATIONS
Holiday Inn Downtown, 138 Lafayette St.
Many New York hotels offer packages this time
(Chinatown);
(800) 465-4329.
of the year. With more than 100,000 rooms, New
York City never sells out. The Hotel Reservation
Staying with Children — Among the many
Network (800-964-6835) or hotels.com has low
room rates for economy-class accommodations hotels where children stay at no charge with their
and features discounts on many hotel chains in- parents are The Sheraton Manhattan, 7th Ave. becluding Sheraton, Marriott, Wyndham and inde- tween W. 51st and 52nd Sts. (an indoor pool)
pendent hotels. Many hotels feature Christmas (800) 325-3535; Mansfield Hotel, West 44th St.,
Day dinners. When calling for a reservation or in- (212) 944-6050; Best Western Manhattan, West
formation, be sure to ask for the best rate, special
promotions or holiday packages. Also ask if any 32nd St. (800) 551-2303; Hotel Pennsylvania,
across from Madison Square Garden, (800)
special amenities are included in the room rate.
223-8585.
Doral Park Avenue, Park Ave. and 38th St.,
(877) 99-DORAL.
HOLIDAY DINING
Fitzpatrick Manhattan, 687 Lexington Ave.,
(800) 367-7701.
Algonquin Hotel, 59 W. 44th St., (888)
Tavern on the Green, Central Park at 67th St,
304-2047.
(212) 873-3200, has a Christmas Eve and ChristSheraton Russell, 45 Park Ave., indoor pool, mas Day Dinner in the Crystal Room with an
(800) 326-3535.
Le Parker Meridien, 118 W. 57th St., (800) 18-foot tree with 3,000 ornaments.
543-4300.
Several hotels have special holiday menus but
Trump Int’l Hotel & Tower, 1 Central Park,
call
to confirm time, dates and prices, among
(888) 448-7857
The New York Palace, 455 Madison Ave., them, The Lowell Hotel, (800) 221-4444, The Algonquin, (212) 840-6800, The Four Seasons,
(800) NY PALACE.
(212) 758-5757.
The Lowell, 28 E. 63rd St, (800) 221-4444.
80 13:14:53 11/18/02
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Your Neighborhood Toy Store
Wednesday, November 27th and
Friday, November 29th thru
Sunday, December 1st
Also, Monday December 2nd
(Princeton Only)
Silent Night,
Solstice Night
Gather ’round the Yule fire
for winter reflection and
holiday cheer
BY DAWN M. NIKITHSER
ECK the halls with boughs of holly, falalalalalalala...”
It’s that time of year again, December 21st, the special day when we celebrate the longest night of the
year, the night we welcome the sun back into our lives by decking
the house with decorations of red and green, place brightly colored
balls and tinsel all over the boughs of a pine tree, hang holly
branches and mistletoe in and near doorways, eat good food, appreciate good friends and family, exchange gifts and reflect upon all of
the wonderful things in our lives.
“Hang on a minute,” I can hear you saying, “You sound a little
confused. I mean, you seem to have a lot of the traditions right, but
aren’t you a bit off on things like the date and the reason?” That
could be true, I was talking about Christmas or Hanukkah, the two
most commonly recognized holidays at this time of year. But I am
talking about a slightly lesser-known though no less valid celebration, the Winter Solstice holiday, Yule.
Anthropologists and cultural historians have long known of the
importance of the Winter Solstice. There is evidence that many ancient cultures celebrated on or around the solstice day, cultures in-
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(609) 921-9110
Wednesday 9:30-9 • Friday 6-9
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Southfield & Princeton-Hightstown Rd.
West Windsor, NJ • (609) 799-8900
See YULE, Page 34
Wednesday 9:30-7 • Friday 8-9 • Saturday 9-8 • Sunday 10-6
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
33
80 13:14:38 11/18/02
B
Yule
cluding the Celts, the Norse, the Egyptians, Greeks,
even ancient American peoples such as the Inca, and it
is certainly true that many modern cultures all around
the world celebrate a great holiday during this particular
time of year. The three big ones are Christmas, Hanukkah, and Ramadan, but other modern religious groups
also have their own December traditions. Buddhists celebrate the Bodhi day on Dec. 8 to honor the day when
Buddha received enlightenment. Several indigenous
tribal peoples in America have important December rituals as well; the Pueblo tribe celebrates both the winter
and summer solstices, and the Hopi tribe takes part in a
20-day ritual known as Soyal that celebrates the sun’s
strength-giving “return.” But it is among modern NeoPagans (or simply Pagans), practitioners of earth-based
religions whose roots travel back for centuries, who are
most associated with the solstice celebration of Yule,
the second holiday in their religious year.
Pagans celebrate the Yule holiday as the day when
the Sun God dies and is reborn to the Mother Goddess;
this is their mythic interpretation of the reality of the
solstice being the longest night of the year. The long
darkness represents the death and the coming of shorter
nights ahead represents the birth — Old Man Winter being overcome by the promise of Spring. In some traditions, this is known as the battle between the Holly
King, Lord of the waning year (from midsummer to
midwinter), and the Oak King (midwinter to midsummer), Lord of the growing year. This is also representative of nature itself, an important part of Pagan beliefs
— the sun’s return is vital to the earth in order to sustain
life and promote growth. This has great mythic significance for modern Pagans, who see the earth as Goddess
and the sun as God.
The holiday is most often celebrated on the eve of the
actual Solstice, though decorating in anticipation of the
coming sun is often done all month long. The ritual itself follows the myth. In deference to the dying God, it
begins in darkness or semi-darkness with meditation or
reflection, consideration about what is truly important
during a time when many of our human ancestors were
struggling for survival in the cold of winter. Stories are
sometimes exchanged, tales of family hardships and
troubled times and what it took to get through those
dark days, or myths and legends that illustrate the season, such as Gawaine and the Green Knight or the
Greek myth of Hades and Persephone. After a period of
stories and reflection, the welcoming of the new God
begins. Candles are lit throughout the house; a Yule log
is kindled in the fireplace. Songs are sung to welcome
the sun, and the Son, back from the darkness.
Many of the secular customs of the December holiday
season have roots in ancient festivals that modern Pagans strive to emulate. The colors of the season — red,
green, white and gold — hearken back to days of old,
when the only colors outside were the red of winter berries, the green of evergreens, the white of snow and the
gold of sunlight reflecting on that snow. Holly and mistletoe are popular holiday plants, and both have long
heritages in ancient times, holly tied to the Holly King
and mistletoe tied to the Druids and the Nordic people,
both of whom considered the plant sacred in their respective religions. Holly was also said to have been
hung on doorways as a sort of “ghost trap” — the sharp,
prickly leaves snagged evil spirits before they could
make their way into the house — and mistletoe was a
widely used ingredient in love potions. Many modern
homes still festoon their front doors with wreaths of hol-
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34
Holiday Gift Guide
November 19, 2002
ly.
Perhaps the best-known symbol of the season is the
Christmas tree, an evergreen decorated with shining ornaments and bright tinsel, the sparkling centerpiece of
many an American family’s holiday. Not everyone uses
a live tree any longer, but, plant or plastic, its roots are
deep. Sheryl Karas, in her book “The Solstice Evergreen,” reminds us that while we do not know the real
origins of the Christmas tree, the evergreen itself has
long been a potent symbol of rebirth. Our modern practice is likely a vestige of pre-Christian traditions of
bringing the still colorful, still living greenery into the
home at the Winter Solstice to symbolize life in winter’s
deadly cold. This is especially true of modern Pagans,
who often decorate their trees with fruits and berries to
symbolize the earth’s bounty, shining golden balls to
catch the sun’s light, and a shining star at the top. That
star symbolizes not the fabled compass of the Wise
Men, but the pentacle, a five-pointed star that is the sacred symbol of most modern Pagan religions.
You don’t have to be a modern Pagan to celebrate the
Winter Solstice — welcome the Sun back this year at
your own home, regardless of your personal religious
beliefs. Wake up early on the Solstice day and marvel at
the sunrise, quietly thanking the deity of your choice for
giving life and love to you and yours. Scatter grains in
your yard to feed outdoor wildlife, or donate food to a
local shelter, celebrating your own bounty by sharing
with others not so fortunate. Make your own Yule Log;
it’s easy! Craft one of cake batter and whipped cream to
enjoy as your Solstice dessert. Or go traditional and
create one using a log and burnable cloth ribbons to decorate it, then burn it in your fireplace while the family
gathers to tell stories and share memories. Remember to
save a piece or two to kindle next year’s Yule fire.
Thanksgiving
is at
our place
this year.
J
RUSTY SCUPPER for a
traditional Thanksgiving Buffet
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378 ALEXANDER ROAD, PRINCETON
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2MG3501A1119
80 13:13:43 11/18/02
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The Holly and The Ivy
Decorating your holiday home with fresh greens
BY PAULA L. MOLINO
HRISTMAS trees strapped to car
roofs. Sap sticky on fingers. Pine
needles litter clothing. Bringing
home the greens, a reminder that
December 25 is just days away. When
dressing the home with live greenery, a
fresh woodsy scent permeates.
C
An advocate of bringing the outdoors
inside, Nanci Angle, manager of Lawrence Agway in Lawrenceville, believes
that the trend for decorating with greens
is to use natural elements that can go
right back into the earth such as varieties
of evergreen branches, holly berries and
pinecones.
“When you decorate, you have to decide on the features you want to stand out
in your design — your front door, your
mantel, kitchen or dining room table,
porch, maybe an outdoor vignette like a
courtyard,” Ms. Angle explained.
Once decided, Ms. Angle then suggests adding lighting, balls and ribbon to
the greenery. It could be as modest as
white lights, shiny balls and plain ribbon,
to more ornate with colored lights, a
sleigh, or prancing reindeer. Once the
feature is decided, then you have to
create the detail work, which is where
Creative Art Director Lisa Roth comes
The most popular use of greenery is
in.
roping, wreaths and swags. Roping can
be draped around doorways and mantels,
“Think about what you are decorating wrapped around porches and laced
for.” Ms. Roth suggests you consider through fences and banisters. Trimmed
these questions: “Is it for a party or for with bows and intertwined with twinkling
you? What feeling do you want to get lights signal a definite stop on Santa’s
from it? Do you want a homey feeling? route.
Do you want a festive or whimsical feeling? What do you feel comfortable havAdding a touch of seasonal finery,
ing around you and what do you want to wreaths simply adorned with red bows
say?” If you have a formal house, the tra- and pinecones sell for about $20 at Lawditional colonial style of decorating uses rence Agway. Wreaths with elaborate
fruit and natural elements. Flank the front trimmings can range up to $100. If you
door with small evergreen trees festooned desire to create your own, double balsam
with ribbons, pineapples and pomegran- wreaths sell from $5.99-$60.
ates.
Ms. Roth said there are no rules to decMs. Roth enjoys custom designing orating but to express your creativity by
greenery and suggests bringing in pic- adding ornaments, spray painting eletures, favorite elements, or ribbons. It is ments with glitter, or placing a bow off
helpful to know the color theme. Simply center for added interest. “It’s not that
tell Ms. Roth the desired look and she difficult,” Ms. Angle said. “Look to what
takes it from there. Garden centers also is appealing to you. You can’t go
offer cuttings for you to do yourself.
wrong.”
impressive entrances. Ms. Roth said, “It’s
as if God laid them there — they are natural.” Recycle whiskey barrels and flower pots from annuals or scourer the garage for galvanized aluminum buckets
and tins. Wrapping with a holiday plaid
bow extends the Yuletide welcome.
Comb the forest to collect the finest of
nature’s bounty — variegated textures of
foliage, red berries, white birch twigs and
a combination of short and long needle
fir branches. “Take advantage of a great
year for berries, as the trees are loaded,”
Ms. Angle said.
For indoors, Ms. Roth suggests centerpieces such as baskets or ceramic bowls
brimming with different size pinecones
or mixed greens accented with fragrant
cinnamon sticks. Nestling a pillar candle
into the greenery illuminates the holiday
mood. Ivy wrapped around basket handles or wreaths simulate ribbon. Decorating with magnolia leaves, pepper berries,
and elements with sparkle are increasingly popular. Any greens can be kept fresh
longer by occasional misting.
Clusters of poinsettias in a sea of red
or white can showcase a mantel, hearth or
console table. Remember that poinsettias
are tropical flowers and need to be kept
away from the cold. Vibrant amaryllis or
Christmas cactus make elegant table cenSwags are a quick and easy way to terpieces when surrounded with greens.
dress up the outside. They offer a festive
Christmas colors need not be confined
look when displayed on lampposts, porch to the traditional red and green hues. Burlights, garage lanterns, or curb mailboxes. gundy complemented with sage, royal
Wrap ribbon in a T-fashion (like a pack- blue dusted with silver, purple sprinkled
age) around a vintage sled, adding a with gold are beautiful alternatives and
swag. Position sled upright on porch or can coordinate nicely with any décor.
fireside.
Ms. Angle points out, “I think it’s imTo make a swag, start with one to three portant that we do the ‘feel good’ things
larger bough branches. Use remnants cut to make us feel homey, to make us feel
off the bottom of the Christmas tree or like our home is all about the warm fuzzy
purchase additional cuttings. Thicker feelings.” When doing the ‘feel good’
greens like Douglas fir make a nice base. things like dressing your home with
Using a variety of greenery adds texture earth’s offerings, the true spirit of the
and interest. Layer greens in a fan shape season shines through.
resembling a broom. Use florist wire to
Paula L. Molino is a free-lance writer
tie the top of branches together. Add accents like glossy holly leaves and berries, and frequent contributor to Packet Publijuniper sprigs, mini pinecones and white cations’ magazines. She enjoys writing
pine using a glue gun. Crown swag with about fashion, home and garden. She is
the owner of Fashion Fix, a full service
a cheery wire-edged bow.
fashion consulting business. For more inContainers filled with textured greens, formation, contact pmolino@fashionbirch branches, holly and pinecones make fix.com or (215) 321-7399.
November 19, 2002
Holiday Gift Guide
35
2MG3601A1119
80 12:18:46 11/18/02
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Geek Gift Guide
Gadgets and gizmos to delight your high tech toy guru
BY DAWN M. NIKITHSER
OU know the kind — they had
the first computer on the block
and were programming it with
their own games while you were
still trying to figure out how to hit the
“record” button on your VCR. Or maybe
it was that guy throwing around phrases
like “wide screen” and “picture definition” long before DVDs were commonplace. Maybe you married one of them,
or raised one, or maybe you have known
one for a long, long time. And if you are
like me, you dread every holiday that
means you have to get a present for one
of them — there’s no one harder to shop
for than an electronics geek.
Don’t get me wrong — I love the
geeks in my life, my husband especially.
All of them are wonderful, caring, attractive people who just happen to have a
passion for things that, to the rest of us
anyway, are noisy boxes with wires and
pretty lights. When I first met my husband, just about 15 years ago, he could
always be found using his home computer or listening to music on his entirelytoo-complicated-for-a-teenage-boy stereo. In the years since, I have watched
him, and several other close friends, grow
further and further into geekdom, turning
second bedrooms into computer offices,
turning living rooms into home theaters,
and making picture-taking at family gatherings into a high-tech event. And every
holiday season, I experience the same
dread — how do I shop for these people?
So this year, I grabbed my loving spouse,
threw him into the car, and dragged him
from store to store, observing the geek in
his element and taking gift-giving notes
the entire time.
The computer department was first.
“Flat-screen monitors,” he beamed,
“There are totally the way to go. They
look really high tech.” Almost high-fashion, I’d say; unlike the bulky monitors on
most computers, these are as sleek and
stylish as anything slithering down a runway during fashion week. “They look
great and they look great,” he continued,
explaining that seeming redundancy to
my blank expression as meaning the
piece itself looks good and the images on
the screen itself are beautifully clear and
colorful. Even I had to admit they were
pretty sexy for what was basically a pile
of glass, wires and plastic, and the DVDROMs the store had playing on them
looked outstanding. Flat-screen monitors
offer the dual advantage of a small “footprint,”meaning they take up less space on
your desk, and superior screen definition,
meaning all those endless programming
lines and complicated games will look
that much better during the long hours
your geek is occupied by them. Just be
ready for some sticker shock — good
models can run more than $600 and truly
top of the line models meant for the most
discriminating of geeks can cost over
$2,000.
It used to be that stereo geeks and
Y
36
Holiday Gift Guide
Imagine a festive ribbon around Panasonic’s sleek high definition TV.
computer geeks were two totally different
things, but with the advent of recordable
compact discs and the widespread use of
MP3 files — songs and music made into
computer files — those two worlds have
begun to combine. An MP3 player will
keep your geek in tunes whether in front
of the computer or waiting for the bus.
“They’re like Walkmans,” my husband
assured me as he showed me several
small vaguely Walkman-like machines
that didn’t seem to have anyplace to put
in a cassette or compact disc. “You don’t
put tapes in these, honey,” he explained
slowly, “You download music from your
computer right into the player or onto a
card. It’s like a little portable computer
that you can wear on your hip instead of
a little portable stereo that you can wear
on your hip.” And like most geek toys,
these can go from the simple — such as
small models like the tiny iRiver or the
Rio that can hold from thirty minutes to
about two hours of worth of music — to
the ridiculous, like the Apple iPod or the
ARCHOS Jukebox that can hold up
5,000 songs and boast hard drives comparable in size to the ones on most home
PCs. There are models in between the
two extremes as well and there are myriad accessories to go along with them; you
can even buy an adapter for use in the
car. Many MP3 players also utilize
SmartMedia technology, so countless
hours of songs can be stored on tiny cartridges that plug into the players, allowing your geek to make his or her own
mixes without taking up valuable hard
drive space. Rock on.
November 19, 2002
Remember when taking pictures during the holidays was simple? You take
out the camera, snap the photo, drop the
film off at the store and pick up your
prints two days later — red eye, blurred
images, Dad’s thumb in the viewfinder
and all. This is not the geek way. Now,
thanks to computers, there is the digital
camera — no film, no processing, and the
ability to view your photos right after you
take them and even manipulate things
you don’t like. You can print your pictures too, right in your own home. With
the help of a few tools.
Digital cameras are similar to regular
cameras in that they go from simple lowend point-and-shoot models all the way
up to complex SLR (single-lens reflex)
models with interchangeable lenses. My
spouse elucidated for me. “The low-end
digitals cameras are just like regular lowend cameras,” he said, ‘with similar
limits. They don’t have much memory
and they don’t have great resolution, and
you don’t get any fancy lenses or zoom
capabilities.” So they would be great for
the average person, but not for the geek
— fancy capabilities are de rigueur in
geekdom. Start with the moderate models; according to my resident geek, these
cameras are really about how you spend
the money you have made available.
“There’s really three routes you can go. If
you go with the brands that are known for
making high-end film cameras — Nikon,
Canon, etc. — you’re going to spend a
little more but get more features. The
Canon Powershot S100 retails around
$450, as does the comparable Nikon
(Coolpix 885). You can also go with reputable names in computer hardware —
Sony, HP, and the like — where you are
more likely to find models in the
$100-$200 range. There are the names
known for point-and-shoot cameras —
Fuji, Olympus, etc — where you see the
same range of prices as the Sonys and
HPs, but with different levels of quality
and manageability.”
Moderate level cameras generally offer
optical and digital zoom capabilities and
enough room to take a couple hundred
pictures at a time. Some of them also utilize SmartMedia — those same cartridges
that MP3 players use. You can think of
SmartMedia in this case as film, but “film
that can take hundreds of pictures at a
time and can be constantly recharged,” as
my husband put it — instead of processing the film, you dump the pictures from
the camera/card onto the hard drive of
your computer; this clears the camera/
card so you can start all over again.
High-end digital cameras are really for
the photography geek rather than your
everyday computer geek. These cameras,
which retail into the thousands of dollars
for a camera body alone, are very serious.
Even a basic high-end digital camera is
fully programmable, meaning the photographer can adjust the camera settings (aperture, shutter, flash, etc.) as s/he sees fit.
Of course, if you are going to buy your
geek a digital camera, it will only be a
matter of time before they need special
accessories to go along with it. A photoquality printer is likely the first thing on
the list. Some of them are designed to be
connected to your home computer, such
as the Canon color bubble jet photo printer (around four hundred dollars)or the
Epson Stylus photo ink jet printer
(around two hundred dollars); these can
also be used for standard printing.
If that’s not quite good enough for
your geek, try photo printers that are
made to print photos and only photos.
Hewlett-Packard offers several, as does
Sony; these printers can range from about
$150 to over seven hundred. They all offer exceptional quality prints, printed on
regular paper or special glossy photo paper, with single prints being ready in under a minute.
Shopping for your geek can be rough;
this handy guide to some “geeklust”
items might help you out. These are all
“under the tree” kind of items and some
of them are quite large, so ask the store to
help you out with wrapping when you
can. You can always stuff their stockings
with smaller accompanying items — ink
cartridges for that shiny new photo printer, screen cleaner for the sexy flat screen
monitor, SmartMedia cartridges or a
spool of blank CDs for MP3s and holiday
photos, just to name a few. There are
geek gifts in all shapes and sizes; provided they haven’t already bought it all
for themselves.
Or maybe you should just get them
some candy.
Holiday Services
PRINCETON
UNITED
METHODIST
CHURCH
Corner of Nassau St. & Vandeventer Ave.
Princeton, NJ 60-924-2613
Sunday Advent Services
Worship at 9:30am & 11:00am
Church School at 9:30am & 11:00am
December 8 - Second Sunday
5:00-7:00pm Family Advent Night with crafts,
dinner and singing.
December 15 - Third Sunday of Advent
6:00pm Christmas Pageant
December 22 - Fourth Sunday of Advent
7:00pm Chancel Choir Concert
December 24 - Christmas Eve
6:00pm Family Candlelight Christmas Eve
Service
8:00pm Candlelight Christmas Service
James H. Harris, Senior Pastor
David C. Mertz, Associate Pastor
Margaret G. Fullman, Associate Pastor
for Christian Education
ALL SAINTS’ CHURCH
EPISCOPAL
246 Griggstown Road
Belle Mead
(908) 874-4634
16 All Saints’ Road (off Terhune)
Princeton, NJ
609-921-2420
The Rev. Richard Kunz, Rector
Frances F. Slade, Music Director
Our church opens wide
its doors - welcome!
Worship services
8:15 and 11:00am
Sunday School for all ages
9:40-10:40
Nursery provided for services
and Sunday School
Thansksgiving Eve Service
November 27 at 7:30pm
“One King”
Christmas Musical
Saturday, December 7
at 7:00pm
Christmas Eve Service
December 24 at 6:00pm
424 Route 518
Blawenburg, NJ 08504
Advent Vesper Concerts
December 1 - 7:30 PM
David Messineo, Princeton
University Chapel Organist
December 1
Advent Wreath Making
11:30 a.m.
CHRISTMAS MASSES
CHRISTMAS EVE
CHRISTMAS DAY
Wednesday, December 25th
Masses at 7:00, 8:30, 10:00 and 11:30am
Mass in Korean at 3:00pm
NO EVENING MASS
Door Jam - featuring
Christmas and praise music
Westerly Road Church
The Blawenburg Village School
Preschool Choir
with Susan Whitenack
9:30 & 11:00am - 1:30pm (contemporary)
Christmas Eve 5:00 PM
Family Service and 11:00 PM
Candlelight Service
Concerts are free but a free-will offering and/or
donation to the food bank are requestd
We welcome you to worship with us!
37 Westerly Road, Princeton, NJ 08540
609-924-3816
Sunday Services
Thanksgiving Day Service
No. 22 at 10:00am
Christmas Worship Concert
Dec. 16 at 6:30pm
Christmas Eve Services Dec. 24
6:30pm - Family Service with original Christmas
story read by the pastor
11:00pm - Candlelight Service with reflection
on the Incarnation
609-924-2277
Christmas Eve Services
3:00pm Pre-Schooler’s Service
5:00pm Childrens’ Service
8:00pm & 11:00pm
Festival Holy Communion
SUNDAY ADVENT SERVICES
Holy Eucharist
8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.
214 NASSAU STREET
PRINCETON, NJ 08542
Tuesday, December 24th
Rev. Leslie Smith, Rector
Thanksgining Eve Services
November 27
8:00 pm
CHURCH OF SAINT PAUL
4:00pm - Children’s Vigil Mass with
Children’s Choir
6:00pm Vigil Mass
8:00pm Mass in Spanish
11:30 Caroling preceding Midnight Mass
33 Mercer St., Princeton, NJ
Christmas Day Service
10:00am Holy Eucharist & Carol
Building Handicaped accessible
Blawenburg
Reformed
Church
Trinity Church
Episcopal
Christmas Eve
Please join us for an inspiring
message, carols, candle lighting,
and refreshments
Tuesday, December 24
6:00 pm
National Guard Armory
Located on Eggerts Crossing Rd.
Lawrenceville
New Building
Yes, it’s true.
Calvary Chapel will relocate to our
new building on Parkway Avenue in
Ewing on January 5.
New Christian
Preschool
Character First Preschool
will open its doors January 2, 2003.
Find out more at
www.characterfirstpreschool.org
From our Family to Yours,
We wish you health and
happiness for the Holidays and
the up-coming Year.
Warmest wishes
Packet Publications
2MG3801A1119
80 12:19:08 11/18/02
B
A Grandparents’ Odyssey
Treating your grandchild to the best of travel
offers memorable returns
BY SALLY FRIEDMAN
phone in the bathroom? A
real phone in the bathroom? Wow!”
That was the initial reaction to the glories of luxury hotel living
expressed by a young man named Isaiah,
a dazzled 6-year-old whose world was
definitely expanded on a recent visit to
the Four Seasons Hotel in Philadelphia.
The overnight splurge was our gift to
our grandson “Zay,” as he is universally
known, in what has become a lovely family tradition. Instead of lavishing our
grandchildren with typical birthday and
Hanukkah toys and games, we have chosen to give each one a very special overnight at a hotel where the real gift is our
undivided attention — and an early
glimpse of the good life, just for the fun
of it.
Long after the batteries on the latest
toy have worn out, these 24-hour travel
odysseys seem to live on in memory. And
not just for the guests of honor. My husband and I come to know each grandchild
a bit better from these brief odysseys
away from our home or theirs.
In the case of Zay, a quiet little boy
with a thatch of light brown hair and a
matched set of dimples, this time apart
was particularly sweet. Alone — away
from his scene-stealing older sister, the
empress Hannah — Zay was a different
child. Shining the spotlight on him was
its own reward. So was bearing witness
to the welcome Zay received at this elegant hotel where the youngest guests receive the same royal treatment as their
older counterparts. Greeted by name from
the moment of arrival — a custom the
Four Seasons employs when children are
guests — Zay was also met by a red wagon laden with small toys.
“You can pick one,” said the smiling
Hilary Whitney, guest services manager.
Zay still didn’t get it.
“You mean to keep? Forever?” Forget
the marble hallways, the magnificent floral arrangements, the plush furniture. Zay
could pick — and keep — a toy truck.
What more could a 6-year-old ask?
As it turns out, there was quite a bit
more.
One of the great joys of staying in a
fine hotel is the first sight of your home
away from home. In our case, the seventh
floor room which was to be ours for one
night overlooked the majestic Benjamin
Franklin Parkway, with a clear glimpse
of the flags that line that Parkway, and a
view of the magnificent Philadelphia Museum of Art. Even Zay was taken with
the tableau as dusk settled over the city.
“He’ll be ruined forever,” I whispered
to my husband when Zay luxuriated later
in our room with a VCR and “Hercules,”
the film he’d selected from the stash of
young people’s videos at the concierge
desk.
“A
38
Holiday Gift Guide
But hey, isn’t spoiling what grandparents are made for?
Our time with Zay whizzed by too fast.
After a pre-breakfast swim with grandpa in the hotel’s beautiful pool — after a
session with the hotel’s head of security
examining his walkie-talkie and other
communications devices — Zay devoured his French toast and chocolate
milk.
Part of the sheer delight of this experience for us was this precious time with a
little boy who is at the precise golden age
of childhood when wonder has not yet
been edged out. Every detail excited Zay,
from the curly straw for his milk to pushing the elevator button marked “L” for
lobby. The prospect of a morning at the
Franklin Institute, a stone’s throw away
from the hotel, was the final exhilarating
detail. Zay was beside himself. All those
gadgets and hands-on exhibits — all
those marvelous mechanical wonders!
‘Every detail excited Zay, from the curly straw for
his milk to pushing the elevator button marked
‘L’ for lobby. The prospect of a morning at the
Franklin Institute, a stone’s throw away from the
hotel, was the final exhilarating detail.’
Sally Friedman
Zay was equally dazzled by the notion
that he would be sleeping on a sofa bed.
Mechanical to his core, our grandson
spent the first half-hour toying with the
mechanism that transformed the damask
sofa into his private sleep kingdom. Go
figure — kids often find fascination in
things that we take for granted. And that
gift — seeing the world through their
eyes — is yet another bonus of travel
with small fry.
But the greatest single moment came
when Zay stepped into the bathroom to
discover that the words “Welcome
Isaiah” had been strung across the bathtub in bold felt paste-on letters. He
beamed. He giggled. He practically exploded with delight.
And yes, the Four Seasons tends to set
up little surprises like that for its youngest overnighters.
There’s a theory in child rearing that if
you expect good manners from a kid,
November 19, 2002
And the bonus? The Institute has just
launched its new exhibition, the spellbinding “Space Command,” a complete
retrospective on astronomy and space exploration. And its fabled Fels Planetarium
has just reopened after extensive updating.
Zay was like a person possessed, dashing from one exhibit to another, and in
they’ll somehow rise to the occasion. the process, reminding us that it takes
And while we had some concerns, even considerable energy to keep up with a
about dining at the hotel’s less formal 6-year-old in a science museum.
restaurant, we needn’t have.
Too soon, it was time to go into reZay himself insisted on changing into verse. Our watches reminded us that it
his “fancy” shirt — a standard blue ox- was time to return to the hotel and pack
ford-cloth — and his grown-up khakis. up our small guest’s possessions in his
He also informed us that he was quite knapsack. All but that red balloon, which
able to order his own dinner from the Zay carried like some hard-won trophy.
adorable kids’ menu as long was we read
the “hard words” to him.
Too soon, it was time to turn Zay back
While his grandfather and I dined on to his mom, who arrived at the hotel lobthe more adult offerings at the Swann by five minutes early because she’d
Lounge just off the hotel lobby, Zay dug missed her boy so much.
into chicken fingers, french fries and a
After the few public hugs that our
triple scoop of ice cream with unabashed
grandson
allowed, our last glimpse of
delight.
him was just outside the hotel — a small
Our server could not have been more boy in jeans peeking wistfully, one last
helpful, but outdid herself when she pres- time, into the hotel windows with a red
ented Zay with the possession that re- balloon floating in his hand.
mained with him from that moment on: a
It’s an image I’ll carry with me all my
spunky red balloon on a string, festooned
days.
with ribbons.

Women`s holiday wish list Women`s holiday wish list

Transcription

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